A soldier (Hien) survives the war and comes back to live with his brother's family (Tien). He can't seem to adjust to civilian life after the war and feels increasingly alienated from other people, whom he finds calculating, selfish and materialistic.
In early-80s' Hanoi, a director of a state-owned factory welcomes his wife, a journalist, into a changed home after she spent some time away. As she struggles to make sense of their new wealth, he struggles to avoid embezzlement charges by a poor inspector—who turns out to be an old friend of hers.
The dynamics of a Vietnamese rural village change when an urban woman returns to the village she originally belonged to and begins a love triangle.
Two classmates volunteer to work in logistics across the forests of Trường Sơn mountains.
After a streak of betrayals in love, a scholar harbours a disdain for women and vows to stay away from their “venomous nature”. However, he soon grows increasingly obsessed with a prostitute he encountered one night, and falls deeply in love with her against the prejudices of his social class.